Subtitle: More Unscriptural
Teaching From The Signs And Wonders Movement

In case you are not familiar with the term "Third Wave," it is the latest
description attributed to those who are charismatic in worship. Some scholars
have denoted the first wave as Pentecostalism, the second as the Charismatic
Movement, and now the third is the burgeoning growth of what began as the
Vineyard Christian Fellowship. But regardless of the name applied to that
overall system of belief, it continues to place more credence in personal
experience than what the Word of God actually says. Emotions are running
roughshod over solid exegesis of the Scriptures while warnings from concerned
brethren are ignored.

The sheer number of unscriptural practices and abuses taking place within
this movement is staggering. But even though many of those from whom we
receive email readily admit such things are true, it is always the "other
guys" who are wrong--not them! And more often than not, the rationale they
offer is personal experience. In other words, they have personally spoken
in tongues or have seen "demons cast out," etc, so this automatically guarantees
the validity of such spiritual gift(s). But all who rely upon experience
to "fill in the blanks" where the Bible does not give clear doctrinal
teaching (as opposed to statements in the narrative about what took place
at a given time) are most unwise.

And that brings us to the biblical subject of "Spiritual Warfare" and
how it is being totally misrepresented by preachers within the charismatic
camp. Our struggle against the powers of darkness is strictly defensive
in nature and nowhere does the Word of God instruct believers to "rebuke
and bind Satan" by exercising authority over him and his demons. To the
contrary, even God's angels refrain from doing so without being given specific
authorization (such as that seen in Rev.20:1-3).

"But when [even] the archangel Michael, contending
with the devil, judicially argued (disputed) about the body of Moses, he
dared not [presume to] bring an abusive
condemnation against him, but [simply] said, The Lord rebuke you!" Jude
1:9 (Parallel Bible, KJV/Amplified, emphasis mine).

Believers are instructed in the Book of Ephesians
to clothe themselves in the spiritual armor God provides:

"In conclusion, be strong in the Lord [be empowered
through your union with Him]; draw your strength from Him [that strength which
His boundless might provides]. [11] Put on God's whole armor [the armor of a
heavy-armed soldier which God supplies], that you may be able successfully to
stand up against [all] the strategies and the deceits of the devil. [12] For
we are not wrestling with flesh and blood [contending only with physical opponents],
but against the despotisms, against the powers, against [the master spirits
who are] the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spirit forces
of wickedness in the heavenly (supernatural) sphere. [13] Therefore
put on God's complete armor, that you may be able to resist and stand your ground
on the evil day [of danger], and, having done all [the crisis demands], to stand
[firmly in your place]. [14]
Stand therefore [hold your ground], having
tightened the belt of truth around your loins and having put on the breastplate
of integrity and of moral rectitude and right standing with God, [15] And having
shod your feet in preparation [to face the enemy with the firm-footed stability,
the promptness, and the readiness produced by the good news] of the Gospel of
peace. [16] Lift up over all the [covering] shield of saving faith, upon
which you can quench all the flaming missiles of the wicked [one]. [17] And
take the helmet of salvation and the sword that
the Spirit wields, which is the Word of God.
[18] Pray at all times (on every occasion, in every season) in the Spirit, with
all [manner of] prayer and entreaty. To that end keep alert and watch with strong
purpose and perseverance, interceding in behalf of all the saints (God's consecrated
people). Ephes. 6:10-18 (Parallel
Bible, KJV/Amplified, emphasis mine).

Clearly, the exhortation is to stand and
hold our ground against the onslaught of unseen enemies--by utilizing the
armor and weapon the Holy Spirit Himself wields on our behalf. And in the
context of armor and weapons carried by a Roman soldier, the sword of the
Spirit is the Greek word machaira--a short sword or dagger used
defensively
when an enemy got entirely "too close for comfort"! It was a means of last
resort when someone got inside the protection of the soldier's shield and
grappled with him in mortal hand to hand combat. That infighting "kill
or be killed" situation is the mental image the Apostle Paul paints for
us with the words of Ephesians 6:12 (above). Our "wrestling" with supernatural
powers is a life and death struggle and to emerge victorious, we must drive
them from us with God's Word.

When Jesus Christ went into the wilderness to
be tested by the devil (Matt.4, et al), He used the Word of God--the "short
sword" of the Spirit--to defend Himself. As Perfect Man, He entered that
spiritual and physical ordeal to experience it from our perspective.
And when all was said and done the devil was forced to retreat, thereby
demonstrating the complete adequacy of the defensive weapon God has provided!
The Lord did not go on the offensive by "binding" Satan and unleashing
God's mighty sword of judgment--because the Word of God itself is infinitely
more powerful than the prince of darkness will ever be.

My friends, common sense should tell us that if
Satan could be "bound" by the spiritual warfare of believers (a total misunderstanding
of the Lord's teaching in Matt.12:29), how does he keep getting loose and
causing so much misery? The fact of the matter is that the devil is unfettered
and seeking whom he may devour (1 Pet.5:8). God's plan is to allow him
all the rope he needs to hang himself and, as based upon the experience
of Jesus Christ Himself, that involves the testing of believers.
The Old Testament patriarch Job was a perfect example of that principle!
He just stood his ground and endured and did not make the unscriptural
mistake of trying to take the fight to the enemy by intruding into the
supernatural realm

Charismatic teaching today regarding spiritual
warfare revolves around the false concept that believers can be demon possessed.
And without exception the scriptures they use to try to defend this error
are taken from the four Gospels and Book of Acts--all of which were transitional
in nature as they bridged the gap between law and grace. Nowhere in the
epistles written by the Apostle Paul to the Church will one find doctrinal
teaching to substantiate that belief. (Most doctrinal error comes from
a failure to understand that Paul was chosen by the risen Lord to set forth
the great doctrines of the Christian faith. And if he does not cover a
subject in those epistles--it is not Church doctrine! For instance,
the handling of snakes and foot washing are two which quickly come to mind).

Neil Anderson is an author who continues to influence
many charismatics with his teaching concerning the possibility of believers
being demon possessed. Yet in his book, "The Bondage Breaker," he inexplicably
offers a statement that both contradicts his position and explains the
error of its premise:

"We have mistakenly formulated our methods for
dealing with demonic powers from the Gospels instead of the Epistles. This
is easy to do, since the only specific examples of demonic expulsion are
found in Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, and Acts.....Some Christians object
to making a sharp distinction between the Gospels and the Epistles. Yet
all dispensational as well as covenantal theologians see at least some
distinctions in moving from law to grace and from the Old Covenant to the
New Covenant" (The Bondage Breaker, p.207--as cited by Rick Meisel
in a related article from Biblical Discernment Ministries).

At the time Jesus Christ presented Himself to
the nation of Israel as their Messiah, the Bible narrative clearly shows
that Satan and his demons were very much in opposition. Various supernatural
manifestations of demon possession were rampant among the people and the
Lord cast them out to demonstrate divine power and authenticate His ministry.
By extention that power was also given to His Apostles as they spread the
Word throughout the land. For many centuries prior to that day God had
placed His stamp of authenticity upon the ministries of Israel's prophets
by the use of miracles. Beginning with Moses and the burning bush, Israel's
long and checkered history was punctuated with many instances in which
God led them by sight because they demonstrated little or no faith. And
that process continued into the early years of the New Testament era as
God continued to lead the lost sheep of the house of Israel to their Messiah.
The Holy Spirit gave miraculous "sign gifts" such as speaking in tongues,
healing, raising the dead, etc., to various individuals in the early church
as an ongoing witness to Jews in their communities. They had always expected
signs--and even demanded them from the Lord--but He told them that the
sign of the prophet Jonah would be the only one they would receive. Of
course, "the three days and nights" Jonah spent in the belly of the "great
fish" referred to Christ's impending death, burial, and resurrection. And
as the old commentator Matthew Henry said about this topic, "Justly might
Christ had said, 'They shall never see another miracle': but note his wonderful
goodness. They shall have one sign of a different kind from all these..."
In other words the miraculous sign gifts would continue for a time in order
to draw individual Jews to Christ, but the different sign the Lord
spoke of was intended as a testimony to the entire nation--most of whom
would not believe.
And as a result of that unbelief God brought judgment
upon the nation of Israel in A.D. 70 when the armies of Rome
scattered them across the face of the earth. Then at that point historical
evidence appears to indicate all miraculous signs ceased because
there would no longer be a specific witness to the Jews.The
canon of Scripture was complete and its message--its witness-- was for
all men, Jews and Gentiles alike.

And I believe the Apostle Paul predicted the end
of such signs when he said:

The Greek word eidos translated "sight"
means "to strike the eye" and miracles were certainly intended to
do that. But to seek them today is to express a desire to walk by sight
and not faith--a concept alien to New Testament Christianity. Remember
the Lord said, "an evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign..."
(Matt.12:39a).

But getting back to the subject of demon possession--a genuine
believer is possessed by God and his/her body becomes the temple of the
Holy Spirit:

"Do you not know that your body is the temple (the
very sanctuary) of the Holy Spirit Who lives within you, Whom you have received
[as a Gift] from God? You are not your own" 1 Cor. 6:19 (Parallel
Bible, KJV/Amplified, emphasis mine).

The genuine believer belongs to God--is literally
possessed and indwelled by Him as the temple of the Holy Spirit. So why
in the name of reason would anyone reasonably think that the Holy Spirit
will share possession and allow demons to reside within His temple? That
is patently ridiculous, my friends! However, I must add that the oppression
of a wayward believer by demons is a distinct possibility if God allows
it. We see that demonstrated in the fact that God gave Satan permission
to oppress the patriarch Job--after stating His servant was a godly individual:

"And the Lord said to Satan, Have you considered
My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and
upright man, one who [reverently] fears God and abstains from and shuns
evil [because it is wrong]?" Job 1:8 (Parallel Bible, KJV/Amplified).

So in view of Job's being a loyal servant of God,
why was the devil allowed to afflict him so severely? The answer is seen
in the outcome:Job's proper response to the adversity brought
honor and glory to God.

The Bible shows us that demonic principalities and powers have an organizational
structure and system of rank. But nowhere does the Word of God offer any
teaching about "territorial demons" and how to run them off in order to
claim property they hold. Marching around buildings/plots of land, driving
stakes into the ground and anointing them with oil, waving "spiritual flags",
etc., are methods being used today in the name of "Spiritual Warfare"--but
they are without solid Scriptural backing. Yes, Joshua and the children
of Israel marched around Jericho because God gave them specific instructions
to do so. But no believer today will find such instructions in the Bible
that apply to us. Yet, charismatics continue to insist "God told them"
to do such and such by giving them "a word of prophecy," or a vision, or
spoke to them in an audible voice!

Now wait just a minute. Surely any believer with spiritual discernment
should be able to recognize the inherent danger in depraved, sinful humans
like us thinking we get messages directly from God telling us to do things
that are not clearly revealed within the Scriptures. If such messages are
truly legitimate, then where does ultimate authority reside? Who or what
determines truth if the Scriptures are not the absolute standard for faith
and practice? If we allow that benchmark standard to be ignored,
the result will be similar to "jailhouse" lawyers trying to defend clients
in a world without laws!

I was called into the ministry relatively late in life (49) and that
required me to leave behind a good job and house to follow the Lord's leading.
Did I receive a message from Him telling me what to do? No! He dealt with
me in such a way that His will was obvious. It was the only path that brought
peace of heart and mind--so I knew I must take it! Then to erase any doubts
I had (and there were several), I was greatly relieved to find that He
had already moved upon my wife to encourage and support that decision.
We obeyed the call and have never looked back. Every aspect of that life
changing experience was according to scriptural principles and God continues
to bless us richly. But not once in my entire life has He ever given me
a vision, "word of prophecy", or spoken to me in an audible voice--nor
have I ever spoken in tongues. And that "lack" is equally true of many
hundreds of godly people and preachers I have been privileged to know and
love over the years. So does it not stand to reason that if such things
was intended to be the norm for Christians today, a discernable and proportional
number of our number would experience them? Or are we to believe that God
segregated us and only one group has been chosen to receive them?

I do not wish to appear uncharitable or unkind to any brother or sister
in Christ, but the total absence of such manifestations among so many brethren
around the world forces me to a logical deduction: God has either
shortchanged millions of us or millions more are being deceived. And since
Scripture clearly tells us the former is not the case, the latter is the
only option left!

"May blessing (praise, laudation, and eulogy)
be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah) Who
has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual (given
by the Holy Spirit) blessing in the heavenly realm!"
Ephes. 1:3 (Parallel Bible, KJV/Amplified, emphasis mine).

Prior to the completion of the canon of New Testament Scripture God
gifted some within the various churches to orally communicate His Word
to believers. And those utterances were the very Word of God--New
Testament Scriptures--before they were put in written form. But, as a "check
and balance" He also gifted others with the ability to discern whether
or not such utterances were from God:

"To another the working of miracles, to another
prophetic insight (the gift of interpreting the divine will and purpose);
to
another the ability to discern and distinguish between [the utterances
of true] spirits [and false ones], to another various kinds of [unknown]
tongues, to another the ability to interpret [such] tongues" 1 Cor. 12:10
(Parallel Bible, KJV/Amplified, emphasis mine).

Satan was lurking about seeking every opportunity
to deceive believers by distorting or changing the message. That is why
all who claimed to be speaking for God had to pass the test of being cleared
by those who had the gift of discernment. And this balanced system of utterance
and verification got the job done during the early days of the church while
believers in any given assembly were still relatively few in number. But
over time increasing numbers and sinful human nature would obviously make
it very difficult to maintain purity of the Word. So "it is written" became
a reality for the New Testament when the Apostle John penned the final
word "Amen" in Rev.22:21. At that point the miraculous gifts of (1) speaking
and (2) verifying the authenticity of the very Word of God were no
longer needed, because everything God wanted man to know about Himself
and His salvation was tangible and in written form.

And men need to understand the admonitions of
God in both the Old and New Testaments concerning adding to or taking from
His Word (Deut.4:2; 12:32, and Rev.22:18-19) now preclude all possibility
of anything else being communicated via a sinful human! Because Satan
still seeks opportunity to deceive and absolute chaos
will always be the inevitable result when men presume to go beyond scriptural
authority.

I mentioned something in a previous article that needs to be repeated:
All who are charismatic should read the on-line book entitled "I Speak
In Tongues More Than You All." It was written by a charismatic for charismatics
and can be found at the following Internet address:

"Experience is the best teacher" when learning to do something, because
repetition is the key to learning and failure is a part of that process.
But in no way should experience ever be considered the final authority
where matters of faith and practice are concerned. Just because you have
experienced something--including a "salvation experience"--does not necessarily
mean it is of God! Please beware! Everything of a spiritual nature
must be held up to the light of His Word and be measured by it.

If you have been born again and received Jesus Christ as your personal
Savior, but have been very lukewarm in your spiritual walk with Him, you
need to immediately ask Him for forgiveness and for renewal. He will instantly
forgive you, and fill your heart with the joy of the Holy Spirit. Then,
you need to begin a daily walk of prayer and personal Bible Study.

If you have never placed your trust in Jesus Christ as your Savior, but have
come to sense His reality and the approaching End of the Age, and want to receive
His FREE Gift of Eternal Life, you can do so now, in the privacy of your home.
Once you truly believe in Him as Lord and Savior, you are spiritually Born Again,
and are as assured of Heaven as if you were already there. Then, you can rest
assured that the Kingdom of Antichrist will not touch you spiritually. If you
would like to become Born Again, turn to our Salvation
Page now.

We hope you have been blessed by this ministry, which seeks to educate
and warn people, so that they can see the coming New World Order—Kingdom
of Antichrist—in their daily news.